Roca Bar 1618 S. Kentucky Ave.  422-7782

Participating in the October Chefs Challenge didn't really appeal to Jerry Ritter, co-owner with Fred Schroeder of the Roca Bar.

"We have to create a pizza that's not on our menu, right? Well, I think what we already have is as good as it gets," Ritter said. "You can't eat a better pizza than the Round the World pizza."

Still, he and cook Kevin Robbins came up with what they call "a variation of the Becky (Fitzsimmons) Special."

"We decided to go with something healthful — lots of veggies, and we added chicken."

The pizza began with the Roca Bar's famous cracker-thin crust (just one-sixteenth of an inch thick before baking), secret-recipe sauce ("and always put it to the edges — that's a key," Robbins said) and a generous topping of fajita-seasoned chicken.

Then came provolone and mozzarella cheese, followed by spinach, red Spanish onions, black olives, pineapple — and a quick shove into the oven.

Two to three minutes before the pizza was finished baking, Robbins added a large handful of sun-dried tomatoes.

"You can't believe how different a pizza tastes with sun-dried tomatoes," Robbins said. "But you can't put them on with the rest of the ingredients or they'll burn. You have to give them just a couple of minutes in the oven."

"They taste amazing, and sun-dried tomatoes add to the visuals," Ritter said. "We were trying to make a visually appealing pizza, so I wanted to have the red color popping out."

There's a Mountain of Meat Pizza, with sausage, beef, pepperoni, ham and bacon, and a colorless concoction called White Pizza, with ricotta cheese, garlic and mozzarella cheese.

But by far the most popular is the Round the World special (beef, sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, tomatoes).

Roca Bar is the home of the first pizza in Evansville. George (House of Como) Hage was a cook at the Roca Bar five decades ago and introduced the pizza to the Roca Bar and the city in 1953. It's been a love affair ever since.

"We've come up with seven specialty pizzas in the last three years," Ritter said. "We're always willing to add new things to the menu. But the thing about pizza is menus are just a suggestion. They give you ideas. But every pizza can be personalized depending on what you want.

"You want Round the World but without onions? That's fine. That's what you'll get. Want a pizza with just sausage and cheese? Fine. That's what you'll get. In that way, every pizza is a specialty pizza."

In addition to the top-secret crust and sauce recipes, the Roca Bar prides itself on seasoning its own sausage. "That accounts for our special taste," Ritter said. "And we use fresh Roma tomatoes."

Lately, Ritter said, there's been a big call for jalapenos. "Almost all foods that are specialty items or ethnic foods can be put on pizzas, including sauerkraut. We have a wonderful pizza with sauerkraut."

As Ritter talked, Robbins opened the oven door, paddle in hand, to retrieve the pizza — if it was ready. "If the ends turn up, you know it's there. It's a fine line, because you don't want to overcook it.

"When you cut it, you want to hear it snap, but you can't know that while it's cooking," Robbins said.

"It just takes experience," Ritter said. "You just have to know."

As popular as the pizza is, the Italian salad has its own fan base. "We do have people come in just for the Italian salad," Robbins said.

"If you really want something good, try the salad and the Italian dressing," Ritter said. "...Italian salad and Round the World pizza make one of the best meals you can have in this city."